The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives star Jen Affleck struggled during the early months of her third pregnancy.
“I dealt with something that a lot of pregnant women deal with, which is prenatal depression,” she explained. “Unfortunately, I had to go through that during what was also one of the hardest seasons of my life.”
For the welfare of both Jen and her unborn child, producers decided to stop filming Jen during Season 2. But she was able to return for the reunion and said she’s feeling a lot better now.
Jen Affleck reveals she experienced suicidal ideation filming The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Season 2
At the Season 2 reunion, Jen elaborated on production’s decision to stop filming her. Though she says she’s “doing way better now,” the early days of her pregnancy were difficult.
“Looking back … to be honest, it’s a bit of a blur just because I was barely surviving,” she admitted. “I dealt with a lot of suicide ideation … That was definitely one of the hardest times of [my] life. I felt like I couldn’t turn to anyone.”
Adding to her stress were issues in her marriage that she and her husband Zac Affleck were dealing with. Due to her pregnancy, her feelings were intensified and became overwhelming.
“Your body’s going through so many changes,” she said. “To be honest, I’m just grateful for all of the love and support I [received] during that time … Without it, I don’t know where I’d be today.”
Prior to her third pregnancy, Jen and Zac were briefly separated, as he was attending medical school in Arizona. He subsequently dropped out of med school to work on their marriage. But at the reunion, Zac admitted they were both under “a lot of stress.”
“She just had back-to-back babies,” Zac acknowledged. “I was in the process of trying to get into medical school. We had a lot of things in our marriage that still needed to be worked through. That just kind of led to this big explosion, which was Chippendales and everything that happened there.”
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives is streaming on Hulu.
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